Joseph Victor Gomez Ejercito (; born December 26, 1969), also known as JV Ejercito Estrada or simply JV Ejercito, is a Filipino politician and businessman serving as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

since 2022 and previously from 2013 to 2019. He had also served as the representative of

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

from 2010 to 2013 and was the city's mayor from 2001 to 2010. He is a son of former president

Joseph Estrada Joseph Ejercito Estrada (; born Jose Marcelo Ejercito; April 19, 1937), also known by the nickname Erap, is a Filipino politician and former actor, who served as the 13th president of the Philippines from 1998 until his resignation in 2001. ...

, and a half-brother of Senator

Jinggoy Estrada Jose Pimentel Ejercito Jr. (born February 17, 1963), better known as Jinggoy Estrada or Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, is a Filipino politician and film actor serving as a senator since 2022 and previously from 2004 to 2016. He is the current presi ...

. After his father and half-brother were arrested for plunder on April 25, 2001, Ejercito was among the politicians who spoke against the

Second EDSA Revolution The Second EDSA Revolution (), also known as the Second People Power Revolution, EDSA 2001, or EDSA II (pronounced ''EDSA Two'' or ''EDSA Dos'', the Spanish word for "two"), was a political protest from January 17–20, 2001 which peacefully ...

at pro-Estrada rallies that preceded the May 1 riots near

Malacañang Palace Malacañang Palace (, ), officially known as Malacañán Palace, is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the Philippines. It is located in the Manila district of San Miguel, Manila, San Miguel, along Jose Laurel S ...

. Ejercito credits himself as the author of the Universal Health Care Act of the Philippines.

Early life

Joseph Victor "JV" G. Ejercito was born December 26, 1969, in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

to actors Joseph Ejercito Estrada, the then Mayor-elect of

(then a municipality of

Rizal Rizal most commonly refers to: * Rizal (province), a province of the Philippines * José Rizal, Filipino national hero whom the province is named after Rizal may also refer to: People * Akmal Rizal Ahmad Rakhli, Malaysian footballer * Atep Ri ...

), and Guia Gomez, who is also a businesswoman. His given name Joseph Victor is derived from his father and the latter's electoral protest victory to become San Juan mayor in the same year, respectively.

Education

He attended

Xavier School Xavier School ( zh, s=光啓学校, t=光啓學校, p=Guāngqǐ Xúexìao, poj=Kong-khé Ha̍k-hāu; also referred to by its acronym XS) is a private, Catholic, college preparatory school run by the Catholic Order of the Society of Jesus. It ...

for his primary and secondary education and completed his

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in Political Science at

De La Salle University De La Salle University (), also referred to as DLSU, De La Salle or La Salle, is a private, Catholic coeducational research university run by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools with main campus in Taft Avenue, Malate, Man ...

Political career

San Juan mayor

On February 27, 2001, Ejercito filed his candidacy to run for mayor of San Juan. Despite his father's removal from office as

President of the Philippines The president of the Philippines (, sometimes referred to as ) is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in-ch ...

due to the

a month prior, Ejercito stated that in San Juan, "there is still a strong clamor for me to run." He eventually served as mayor for three consecutive terms from 2001 to 2010. It was during his term when San Juan was converted into a highly urbanized city in 2007. He was succeeded by his mother Guia Gomez.

House of Representatives

During the 2010 elections, Ejercito ran for the position of representative for the lone district of San Juan. Over the course of his term, Ejercito authored and/or sponsored 161 bills and/or House measures, five of which were approved by the

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

and passed to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for consideration: *HB 4225: Participatory Governance Through CSOs Empowerment Act of 2011 *HB 4541: Mercury Exposure Information Act of 2011 *HB 4565: Local Housing Boards Act *HB 5870: Cadastral Survey Act of 2012 *HB 6144: Domestic Workers Act of 2012 or ''Kasambahay Bill''

Senate

On October 1, 2012, Ejercito filed his certificate of candidacy for the 2013 Philippine Senate election, where he won as the 11th placer out of 12 winning senators elected. During his six years in the Senate, Ejercito filed a total of 140 bills and resolutions. Ejercito also chaired the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs and the Committee on Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement and the Health and the Demography Committee in the 17th Congress. He was the principal sponsor of the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act (R.A. 11229), which requires children 12 years old and below and shorter than to sit on

child safety seat A child safety seat, sometimes called an infant safety seat, child restraint system, child seat, baby seat, car seat, or a booster seat, is a seat designed specifically to protect children from injury or death during vehicle collisions. Most c ...

s when riding in a vehicle. On April 6, 2016, Sandiganbayan Fifth Division issued an arrest warrant against Ejercito and four other government officials, in connection with allegations on misuse of funds during his term as San Juan mayor. However, Ejercito was cleared of the charges because the case was dismissed. Ejercito ran and launched a campaign to secure a second consecutive term in the

2019 Philippine Senate election The 2019 election of members to the Senate of the Philippines was the 33rd Philippine senatorial elections, election of members to the Senate of the Philippines for a six-year term. It was held on May 13, 2019. The seats of 12 senators 2013 Ph ...

, his candidacy was endorsed by President

Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945) is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the first Philippine president from Mindanao, and is the oldest person to assum ...

. His half-brother, former Senator Jinggoy, who was previously jailed and charged with multiple counts of plunder in 2014, also sought a Senate return. During the campaign, the siblings had a disagreement in the idea of them running at the same time, Ejercito expressed that Estrada running would "ruin his chances", he also threw shade against Estrada as he referred himself as "The Good One" in political ads. Eventually, the half-siblings both lost as Ejercito ended up in 13th place, just a spot outside the winning circle, while Estrada finished at 15th place. After conceding defeat, Estrada wished that Senator

Nancy Binay Maria Lourdes "Nancy" Sombillo Binay Angeles (born May 12, 1973) is a Filipino politician who is the mayor-elect of Makati, having been elected in 2025 to replace her sister Abby. She has served as a senator of the Philippines since 2013. ...

would make it over Ejercito, with both senators vying for the last spot in the partial and unofficial count, Ejercito responded by telling Estrada that he placed 13th in his own hometown, “Let him speak... It’s painful to accept that even in your own bailiwick you are unwanted". Ejercito sought for a comeback to the Senate in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

and won as the 10th placer, earning his second nonconsecutive term. His half-brother Jinggoy Estrada was also successful as he placed 12th. In August 2022, he was elected Deputy Majority Leader, alongside Mark Villar, and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Government and the Senate Committee on Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement. On May 20, 2024, he stepped down as Deputy Majority Leader following changes in the Senate leadership that saw the resignation of

Migz Zubiri Juan Miguel "Migz" Fernandez Zubiri (; born April 13, 1969) is a Filipino politician serving as a Senator of the Philippines. He was the 24th President of the Senate of the Philippines, Senate President of the Philippines from July 25, 2022 t ...

as Senate President.

Personal life

He is married to Hyacinth "Cindy" Lotuaco with whom he has a son, Julio Jose. He also has an older son, Jose Emilio. Joseph Victor is also a Commissioned Reserve Officer of the

Philippine Marine Corps The Philippine Marine Corps (PMC) () is a naval infantry force under the command of the Philippine Navy. The PMC conducts amphibious, expeditionary, and special operations missions. The Philippine Marines share the traditions of both the US ...

with the rank of

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. He is an adopted member of the

Philippine Military Academy The Philippine Military Academy ( / ) also referred to by its acronym PMA is the premier military academy for Filipinos aspiring for a commission as a military officer of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). It was established on Decembe ...

Class of '88, ''Maringal''. Ejercito has a tattoo on his right arm: A red eight-rayed sun with the

baybayin Baybayin (,), also sometimes erroneously referred to as alibata, is a Suyat, Philippine script widely used primarily in Luzon during the 16th and 17th centuries and prior to write Tagalog language, Tagalog and to a lesser extent Visayan lang ...

character for ''ka'' at the center, and the phrase ''Para sa Bayan'' ("For the country") and the letter "K" on top of the sun. He has also raced in the

Toyota Vios The Toyota Vios is a nameplate used for subcompact cars produced by the Japanese manufacturer Toyota, primarily for markets in Southeast Asia, China and Taiwan since 2002. Slotted below the compact Corolla, the Vios serves as the replacement ...

Cup. He is also an avid cyclist, having received attention for biking from his residence in San Juan to the Senate building in

Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Philippine census, 2020 census, it has a ...

, and for an incident where he fell off his bike after tripping on a

pothole A pothole is a pot-shaped depression in a road surface, usually asphalt pavement, where traffic has removed broken pieces of the pavement. It is usually the result of water in the underlying soil structure and traffic passing over the affecte ...

along

Roxas Boulevard Roxas Boulevard is a popular waterfront promenade in Metro Manila in the Philippines. The boulevard, which runs along the shores of Manila Bay, is well known for its sunsets and stretch of coconut trees. The divided roadway has become a tradem ...

a year prior.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ejercito, Joseph 1969 births Living people Children of presidents of the Philippines De La Salle University alumni JV JV Mayors of San Juan, Metro Manila Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from San Juan, Metro Manila Nationalist People's Coalition politicians People from San Juan, Metro Manila Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino politicians Senators of the 16th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 17th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 19th Congress of the Philippines United Nationalist Alliance politicians